Stephen R. Donaldson Quotes

United States, Writer
May 13, 1947

Stephen Reeder Donaldson is an American fantasy, science fiction and mystery novelist, most famous for The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, his ten-novel fantasy series. His work is characterized by psychological complexity, conceptual abstractness, moral bleakness, and the use of an arcane vocabulary, and has attracted critical praise for its "imagination, vivid characterizations, and fast pace". He earned his bachelor's degree from The College of Wooster and a Master's degree from Kent State University. He currently resides in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

I respect my limitations, but I don't use them as an excuse.

Stephen R. Donaldson
- Use
- Excuse
- Limitations
It is wrong to ask for more than you give freely. In this way, we come to resemble what we hate.

Stephen R. Donaldson
- Give
- Ask
- Freely

Futility is the defining characteristic of life.

Stephen R. Donaldson
The heart cherishes secrets not worth the telling.

Stephen R. Donaldson
- Heart
- Secrets
- Telling
Any belief that puts itself beyond doubt nurtures its own collapse.

Stephen R. Donaldson
- Doubt
- Belief
- Collapse
We didn't make the world. All we have to do is live in it.

Stephen R. Donaldson
- World
- Make
- Live In
This you have to understand. There's only one way to hurt a man who's lost everything. Give him back something broken.

Stephen R. Donaldson
- Man
- Hurt
- Broken
Despair and bitterness are not the only songs in the world.

Stephen R. Donaldson
- World
- Songs
- Despair

We need metaphors of magic and monsters in order to understand the human condition.

Stephen R. Donaldson
Joy is in the ears that hear.

Stephen R. Donaldson
- Joy
- Hear
- Ears
It is the responsibility of the living to make meaningful the sacrifices of the dead.

Stephen R. Donaldson
- Living
- Dead
- Sacrifices